


When Darkness fell for Light

by xJordanKayX



Series: Same Faces Different Places [10]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-07
Updated: 2018-03-07
Packaged: 2019-03-28 08:16:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13900002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xJordanKayX/pseuds/xJordanKayX
Summary: Vampire Toni falls for a mortal Cheryl





	When Darkness fell for Light

**Author's Note:**

> This is the product of a Riverdale group I am part of. This week's Theme was Vampires
> 
>  
> 
> World  
> The Serpents are a clan with strict rules about revealing themselves and especially Turning people

She's drawn to her the very first time she sees her across the crowded dance floor of the Whyte Wyrm. She's red headed, fair skinned, young, beautiful – and mortal. Even if Toni didn't know without a doubt the girl doesn't belong to them she can still smell the heavy scent of sweat glistening on pale skin and the sweet flow of blood inside her veins. 

She's dangerous in the same way as she's everything Toni is attracted to. The beating heart, the pumping blood, the breaths of air – it's all Toni wants but knows she can't have. She's come to terms with being undead centuries ago, but sometimes it's hard finding the one you think you could be with for the rest of your life and know that it's just not possible. She wouldn't do this to anyone she cares about. She wouldn't put them through the torture that is changing on purpose. 

It had been different for her, she never asked to become a Vampire. She remembers leaving her home in a fit of rage against her parents for arranging her marriage and the next thing she knew had been waking up in the forest. Alone, in the dark, she'd been hurting all over – a downside of Turning she'd later learn. She had spend hours lying on the dirty ground, not able to get up or even move, until she'd finally stopped aching with every breath she took; and that's when she had realized she didn't need the breaths she had been so eagerly sucking into her lungs for the last hours. Of course, the Undead had already been a story elders taught their children and grandchildren, but how possible had it really been that they were, actually * real * and not just some figment of imagination someone had come up with centuries before she had even been born.

She had put it down to fear, of * course * she had needed to breath and had pulled herself off the ground with much effort. She had made her way home again, but with no idea where she actually was, it had taken another hour until she had found a spot she knew how to navigate to her house from. The strong urge to gulp down on hot, fresh, flowing blood hit her the moment she'd stepped into her village and, not knowing what is going on with her, she'd run home as fast as she could. The rising sun had burned her hand when she'd reached out for the door handle and it had been the last straw. She had turned and ran. 

She'd run and run for hours, only absently noticing the speed in which she was moving, until the strong urge to feed had come over her again and she'd been too weak to move. She'd found a dark spot where the sun won't ever reach and curled up as small as she could. There's no way vampires were real, but it had been the only logical explanation she had been able to come up with. And she would not drink on humans – it had grossed her out so much, she still sometimes feels it today. 

Elizabeth had found her weak and starving three days later and had brought the girl to her parents. FP and Alice had taken her and her sister, along with another pair of siblings in, when they had found themselves in a similar situation. And so Toni had learned about what it takes to be a Vampire and about the Rules and Regulations and how to survive and, most importantly, how it feels to have a real and loving family. She hasn't seen her own parents since that day she'd stormed out and as time went on, she stopped missing them completely. To this day, she has no idea who turned her and why. Whoever did had broken one of their laws, and she would have been well within her right to avenge herself for that, but they'd never found them. And it's not like there were that many laws to abide by:   
Never reveal themselves  
Never leave newly Turned on their own  
Never leave someone you fed on without wiping their memory

But this had been her unwilling Turning, she didn't have a chance back then. Her only options had been accepting what she'd become or commit suicide by torching herself in the rising sunlight. But this girl, she would have to undergo Turning under the 5 rules and that's only of Toni even gets the okay to reveal herself and, in turn, their whole clan. So Toni relents to watching from afar, doesn't dare approaching the beautiful redhead for fear of actually falling for her and dragging her down into something she would never choose herself. 

****

Staying away is harder than it might seem, especially with the girl showing up at their local hangout every weekend and the odd day in between, too. Toni had staked her claim over the unsuspecting mortal, only to protect her from ending up as food for her fellow clan members. Toni has no intention of actually feeding on her, she's way too afraid of getting too close. It's a connection she's never felt before and she hasn't even exchanged a single word with her object of desire. Toni knows those feelings only from tales of other Vampires, but she's certain this is what it feels like to meet your eternal mate. 

It happens very rarely, that your mate turns out to be a mortal and she knows of exactly one couple that had beaten all odds and actually made it. All the other few had either been too chicken to act on it, or had failed in their Loyalty Test. She will be miserable for the rest of her Immortal existence, but it is still better than being responsible for the girl's death. Real death. 

So Toni doesn't approach the girl, only looks at her from across the bar every Saturday night and it's four weeks later that she shared her first words with her. Toni's pouring drinks from behind the bar when the redhead comes up and orders and it's the only conversation they have whatsoever, but Toni falls for that sweet voice up close. The redhead winks at her and throws a flirty smile over her shoulder when she returns to her friends on the other side of the dance floor and Toni's done. 

Gone are the thoughts of not risking it, of staying away. It's going to be a long process and before she will even consider asking for permission to reveal herself, she'll be spending time getting to know the Beauty that had captured her heart, but she's determined now, to find out if this is just a passing fling for the girl or if she'd be willing to spend their whole, immortal, life together. It is still a hard decision to make, but somehow Toni can feel that this will be it, that the two of them will make it. Now she just has to find out if there's even a chance. 

****

She walks up to the girl leaning against the bar a week later, casually invading her space, trying desperately to ignore the scent of pumping blood taunting her nostrils. She's never one to be shy, flirting had always been her best way of getting people she wanted to feed on to trust her, and so she won't start tonight. With a confident smirk and an attitude as if she owned the place (which * is * partly true even), she introduces herself. 

“I'm Toni” She's so close to her ear that the sound of rushing blood is almost overwhelming and she has to close her eyes for a moment. She will not be feeding on the girl, no matter how enticing it sounds right this minute. 

“I was wondering when you'd get the courage to come over and talk to me” The redhead is laughing, and the sound is so angelic that Toni hopes she's not actually melting into the floor. “My name's Cheryl” 

“What do you mean, Cheryl?” She tries the name and she loves how it sounds when it falls from her lips. By the way the dark red painted ones part slightly in front of her, she's not the only one who likes it. 

“Please, you think I haven't noticed you staring at me from across the room the last five weeks?” It's not an accusation Toni notices, just plainly a fact and she has a feeling that Cheryl didn't mind the staring. But, as far as she's concerned, Toni is nothing more than a normal girl like her, that likes to spend her weekends in crowded bars. She doesn't know that Toni's hanging out in their own spot, owned by none other than her father, and that the night is the only time Cheryl can ever really see her. Toni might not be sleeping in a coffin and turn into a bat whenever she desires, but she's still being burned to a crisp if she spends any larger amount of time in the sun. 

“So why didn't you come and talk to me?” A raised eyebrow and a flirty smile and Toni thinks she has Cheryl wrapped around her finger. Too bad she doesn't really know anything about the redhead yet. 

“You were the one staring” Cheryl shrugs one of her shoulders and then motions towards her empty glass on the counter. “Are you going to buy me another drink or what?” 

It's the start of a beautiful friendship.

****

She sneaks around, meeting Cheryl only at night for the next two months, getting to know the girl and falling ever harder. She comes up with a new excuse every time, about why they can't see each other during the day, but the one time she doesn't have to lie is when Cheryl asks to meet her parents and Toni tells her they are dead. She omits the fact that they had been dead for over a few centuries and that she technically has people looking out for her she calls parents, but it's still not a lie – not like almost everything else she tells Cheryl. Her name, her age, her likes and dislikes; all those are true more or less. But she can't tell her what she's actually doing during the day or where she comes from, where she lives now, and she hates it with all her being. 

She wants Cheryl, now and forever, but she has to wait until the redhead makes the first step in that direction. Toni would have been ready to say 'I love you' the moment they first talked, but Cheryl needs to be the one saying it first. She needs to say it because she wants to and because she feels it and not because Toni blindsided her and she feels pressured into returning the feeling. And only then is Toni prepared to go to her father and ask for permission to let Cheryl in on their secret. It's the best she can do in order to find out Cheryl's motives apart from secretly dating the girl for the next fifty years. And the latter's a pretty stupid idea. 

And there's no going back after Toni reveals herself to be a Vampire. Either Cheryl will accept it and make it through the Loyalty Test and the process of Turning, or her memory will be wiped clean and Toni is not permitted to ever see her again. And then it's five months after had first exchanged words and Toni knows she has to either end this for good or finally come clean to her parents. 

****

FP is not thrilled when Toni tells him what she has been up to the last months, but who is he to deny her the chance to be with her mate, the chance of happiness. She's fully prepared to hold his own past against him should it come to it, but he seems to be aware of the hypocrisy, too, and so he doesn't argue. He does, however, makes her think it over for a few more days, lets her promise to consider every little detail and not rush into things. Just because it had worked out for him, doesn't mean he hasn't seen couples crash and burn in attempting the same thing. 

And she does promise him all this, takes a whole week to contemplate telling Cheryl the truth, but in the end she comes to the same conclusion she had already arrived at. She can trust Cheryl, and as much as it would crush her, she will not pressure Cheryl into being Turned. After she knows the whole story, it will be up to her to decide if she wants to join them or not – and if she chooses to say no, then Toni will just have to survive that. 

Toni has chosen a quiet spot outside near the woods, a place Cheryl had told her once she likes to go and think; to be alone. It's still near enough to the city to not be completely alone and she hopes it'll give Cheryl the security that Toni didn't lure her out there to harm her. The pick nick blanket is spread out and the candles set and the sun is just sinking down on the horizon when Cheryl arrives. Toni can see her even without the fading light and she's pretty sure she hasn't seen anything more beautiful her whole life. 

She gets up from her spot on the ground when the redhead approaches and with a smile envelopes her in her arms. She's gotten used to the overwhelming urge to sink her teeth into the tantalizing flesh, has learned to ignore it, but it's still there. Every time. Then Toni does something she hasn't dared to in five months and leans forward to capture Cheryl's lips with her own, in a short but sweet kiss. It's the hardest thing she's ever done, not getting carried away by the smells and warmth all around her, but she needed to do this. It might not be fair to both of them, but should all this come to an end tonight, she wants this memory. 

Cheryl is suspicious now. She's tried to initiate a kiss once or twice, but it had always been Toni to find some excuse or the other to stop it. This looks like a good-bye and Cheryl is not stupid. “You could have dumped me without the fancy date, you know” 

“What?” 

“You're breaking up with me, and had I known that, I would not have spent the last of my money on new clothes to impress you” She folds her arms across her chest and looks Toni up and down accusingly. She's not new to heartbreak, she'll get over it, but this time she had actually been in love. She would have done anything for Toni. 

“First of all, you don't need to impress me, I love you without all that” She puts all the emotion she can behind that sentence and accompanies it with a look full of adoration. She needs to make this one thing crystal clear, before uttering the dreaded words nobody ever wants to hear. “But yes, we do need to talk. Or better yet” She adds, when she sees Cheryl trying to cut her off. She knows what the words would be. “I have to tell you something. And it's very important, that you listen to me and that you won't freak out” 

“Okay, now you're scaring me” Cheryl takes a seat against the big tree Toni has spread the blanket under and waits for the other girl to join her. 

“Good” Scared Cheryl might actually try to rationalize what she'll be hearing before jumping into action. “I am a Vampire” She doesn't know how to do it other than ripping the band aid right off. 

“Yea, sure” And judging by Cheryl's reaction it might have been the wrong approach. So Toni takes a deep breath, gathers her feelings and emotions and pulls her lips back into a small, smile-like gesture, revealing a sharp pair of fangs. Cheryl flinches backwards involuntarily. “Woah. Those are actually real?” 

“Yes” Toni doesn't know why this revelation doesn't have the girl more scared. Vampires might be trending right now, but still only in fiction. Sitting next to a live, undead, one would definitively scare * her *. “You can't tell anyone about this, or I'll be in trouble” 

“So there are more of you? Right here in Riverdale?” This conversation reads like she just confessed to being a vegetarian or a dog lover. Shouldn't this be more complicated?

“Those people at the club, the biker gang I belong to? Not a biker gang. That's my clan. It's our disguise in front of mortals. The people who took me in after I was Turned, they own the Wyrm” And then Cheryl asks how Toni became a Vampire and everything about the past Toni couldn't share before and she's so glad to finally be able to, that the important question is pushed to the side for a while. 

Toni fills her in on everything Vampire, on the things they can and cannot do. On the things she's offended by seeing it portrayed on TV or in movies. She tells her everything about where and how she'd grown up before becoming a Vampire and how life went on for her after being Turned. They spend hours simply talking, and when the sun starts peaking over the horizon, Toni finally asks. 

“Why are you not scared of me?” 

“Because I love you” It is that simple. She's fallen in love with Toni weeks ago and the fact that she's suddenly turned out to be a Vampire does not change that. There have been so many opportunities for Toni to hurt her, but she's alive and well, so there is absolutely no reason to be afraid of her now, just because she * knows *. 

****

There is exactly one person Toni knows who has ever gone through a voluntary Turning and so she and Cheryl meet Alice in the back office of the Whyte Wyrm two days before the redhead has to make a decision. Technically, Cheryl already did, but Toni had insisted on her taking the time that's been given her and talk to someone who can tell her what she'll have to go through. 

Toni had told her the 5 Rules of voluntary Turning and Cheryl had taken them in and considered them and had made her decision pretty quickly. The 5 Rules are pretty easy in her opinion. 

You have to be Turned by your mate  
You cannot leave your mate  
You have to pass the Loyalty Test  
You die if you don't pass  
You have to be fully awake during your Turning

She has to admit, rule number four might sound a little scary, but Cheryl has no intention of not passing number three. And that's what they are here for right now, Toni has no idea what the Test actually entails or how the Turning process really works. She had been Turned against her will, has been unconscious for the most part of it and she has no idea * how * to turn someone at all. But Alice had chosen to be one of them a lot of centuries ago, which means she has gone through what Cheryl has still in front of her. 

“Don't worry about the Loyalty Test, that's a pretty easy thing” Alice starts without waiting for a question. She slides on top of the desk, crosses her legs and leans back onto one hand. Her eyes stay on the two girls huddled together on the little couch. Toni's like a daughter to her, just like her other four 'children', and she's glad to see she's found someone who makes her happy. “You will just have to prove that you haven't told anyone about us and that you will continue to do so” And when the girls ask why so many people don't pass that test, Alice tells them that there are very few people in the world who would chose love over the possibility of being rich and famous for selling anything abnormal to the press and media. 

“What does it mean, being awake during the Turning?” Toni asks next, because she knows she's passed out during hers and she can't think of any way to prevent that. 

“You were bitten in the neck, it will make you pass out, that's why we feed like that” Toni's hand moves up to her non-existing fang marks and she caresses the spot softly. She knows where it had been even after all these years. “Anywhere else and you feel the venom curse through your body while you Turn. I'd recommend the wrist” She exchanges a short look between them, to make sure they still want to do this. “It's the fastest way for the Venom to spread. Takes about two hours off the whole process” 

“And what exactly * is * the process?” Cheryl is not backing out, but she realizes now, that maybe she should have gotten this information before making her mind up. 

That's the moment Alice had been dreading, because she's afraid that when Cheryl finds out exactly what Turning involves, she'll freak and won't want to do it anymore. But she's promised to help and answer any questions and so she'll do that. “Toni will have to almost drain you off all the blood in your body and leave just enough to spread the Venom through your veins.” Another pause in which she lets them absorb the information. She's not finished yet and she won't sugarcoat anything. “You will be in a state of incredible pain, your body will feel like it's on fire and you'll probably wish you could have just died instead. After about half a day, the feeling will gradually slow down and you will only experience the normal side effects of Turning” 

“You did all this?” Cheryl asks. She's trembling, but she's determined to do this. She wants to be with Toni and nothing will keep her from that. 

“Yes” Alice nods her head. She gives them a small smile in encouragement. This had not been to scare the girl away, but only to make them aware of everything they will commit to. It's the only way to make this a fair choice. 

“Did you ever regret it?” Toni doesn't think so, she's been observing Alice and FP for the better part of three centuries now and they seem so in love as ever. 

“I would not trade any minute of the pain from that day if it meant giving up FP for it.” 

****

It hurts, so much so Cheryl wants it to end right now, one way or the other. She's proven her Loyalty ten times over and they had been completely satisfied with her and Cheryl had been surprised at how easy this really was. And then Toni had bitten her, the wrist like Alice suggested, and when the pain started Cheryl had been torn between her love for Toni and the knowledge that she had the choice to * not * do this. 

But Toni is right beside her the entire time, just like FP and Alice, along with Toni's siblings and it is all Cheryl needs to hang on and make it through the pain and the burning. When the aching finally dies down about twenty four hours after she's been bitten, Toni takes her out, shows her how to feed and kisses her like she's wanted to for the last six months but hadn't dared to. And, even without the beating heart and the warm, rich blood flowing through her veins, Cheryl is still as intoxicating to Toni as she has been before.


End file.
